R657-41-9. Conservation Permit Funds and Reporting

  (1) All permits must be auctioned or distributed by August 15, annually.

  (2) Within 30 days of the last event, but no later than August 15 annually, the conservation organization must submit to the division:

  (a) a final report on the distribution of permits;

  (b) the total funds raised on each permit; and

  (c) the funds due to the division.

  (3)(a) Conservation permits shall not be issued to a person possessing a conservation permit voucher unless the person redeeming the voucher:

  (i) possesses a valid Utah hunting or combination license;

  (ii) remits to the division the applicable permit fee ; and

  (iii) is otherwise legally eligible to possess the particular hunting permit.

  (b) If the conservation organization is paying the permit fees for the permit recipient, the fees must be paid from the 10% retained by the conservation organization as provided in Subsection (5)(a).

  (4)(a) Conservation organizations shall remit to the division by August 15 of each year 30% of the total revenue generated by conservation permit sales in that year.

  (b) The permit revenue payable to the division under Subsection (4)(a), is the property of the division and may not be used by conservation organizations for projects or any other purpose.

  (c) The permit revenue must be placed in a federally insured account promptly upon receipt and remain in the account until remitted to the division on or before August 15 of each year.

  (d) The permit revenue payable to the division under this subsection shall not be used by the conservation organization as collateral or commingled in the same account with the organization's operation and administration funds, so that the separate identity of the permit revenue is not lost.

  (e) Failure to remit 30% of the total permit revenue to the division by the August 15 deadline may result in criminal prosecution under Title 76, Chapter 6, Part 4 of the Utah Code, and may further disqualify the conservation organization from obtaining any future conservation permits.

  (5) A conservation organization may retain 70% of the permit revenue generated from auctioning conservation permits, as follows:

  (a) 10% of the permit revenue may be withheld and used by the conservation organization for administrative expenses.

  (b) 60% of the permit revenue and accrued interest, excluding standard banking fees assessed on the account where the permit revenue is deposited, may be retained and used by the conservation organization only for eligible projects, as provided in Subsections (i) through (ix).

  (i) eligible projects include habitat improvement, habitat acquisition, transplants, targeted education efforts and other projects providing a substantial benefit to species of wildlife for which conservation permits are issued, unless the division and conservation organization mutually agree in writing that there is a higher priority use for other species of protected wildlife.

  (ii) retained revenue shall not be committed to or expended on any eligible project without first obtaining the division director's written concurrence.

  (iii) retained revenue shall not be used on any project that does not provide a substantial and direct benefit to conservation permit species or other protected wildlife located in Utah.

  (iv) cash donations to the Wildlife Habitat Account created under Section 23-19-43, Division Species Enhancement Funds, or the Conservation Permit Fund shall be considered an eligible project and do not require the division director's approval, provided the donation is made with instructions that it be used for species of wildlife for which conservation permits are issued.

  (v) funds committed to approved, division projects will be transferred to the division within 60 days of being invoiced by the division.

  (A) if the division-approved project to which funds are committed is completed under projected budget or is canceled, funds committed to the project that are not used will be kept by the division and credited back to the conservation organization but will be made available for the group to use on other approved projects during the current or subsequent year.

  (vi) retained revenue shall not be used on any project that is inconsistent with division policy, including feeding programs, depredation management, or predator control.

  (vii) retained revenue under this subsection must be placed in a federally insured account. All interest revenue earned thereon must be accounted for and used consistent with the requirements of this subsection.

  (viii) retained revenue shall not be used by the conservation organization as collateral or commingled in the same account with the organization's operation and administration funds, so that the separate identity of the retained revenue is not lost.

  (ix) retained revenue must be completely expended on approved eligible projects or transferred to the division by August 15, two years following the year in which the relevant conservation permits are awarded to the conservation organization by the Wildlife Board. Failure to expend or transfer to the division retained revenue by the August 15 deadline will disqualify the conservation organization from obtaining any future conservation permits until the unspent retained revenue is expended on an approved eligible project or transferred to the division.

  (x) all records and receipts for projects under this subsection must be retained by the conservation organization for a period not less than five years, and shall be produced to the division for inspection upon request.

  (6)(a) Conservation organizations accepting permits shall be subject to annual audits on project expenditures and conservation permit accounts.

  (b) The division shall perform annual audits on project expenditures and conservation permit accounts.